dangerous anthems

When we hear a talented musician play something amazing and fresh we do not say that music is doing a "new thing".

Music is interesting in that while it is experienced by physical senses, it somehow crosses between the natural and supernatural. Some argue that music is discovered rather than created... all the sounds and rhythms are out there, but we need to find them and piece them together. Music would exist without people, but it is through people that we realize music exists.

When we hear a talented musician play something amazing and fresh we say that the musician is doing a new thing... and we can describe what it is they are doing.

Quite a while ago I had a conversation with a pastor of a local congregation. During our time together I was describing to him something that I had been processing and had some concerns about. During this conversation I ended up using the phrase "dangerous anthems" to describe what I had been witnessing.

To give a brief description...


dangerous anthem: [deyn-jer-uhs - an-thuhm] -noun

1. A blanket statement with biblical truth used to justify an individuals actions, often times overriding question and accountability.

Just to give an example, I will pick one such anthem that causes me alarm...

"God is doing a new thing"

This statement in itself is not entirely inaccurate. I think that God inspires and moves people to begin new works quite frequently.

It becomes a dangerous anthem when paired with other symptoms.

It is not as though the eternal and everlasting Creator of the universe just realized one day that what He had started out doing was no longer right. Like He had made a mistake and decided that His initial trajectory was miscalculated and he had to change what He was doing in order to start "a new thing".

He didn't just say "oops. sorry. let me try that again.... "

but... sometimes it seems that people believe that has happened and will justify actions based on the dangerous anthem. UnGodly changes can be made because of a small nugget of truth used inappropriately.

To some degree, I think that music operates in a similar fashion to how God does. God is unchanging although unpredictable. In theory, we are supposed come to understand more about God through the people who claim to follow Him. Sadly this is not often the case, but in theory... it's how it is supposed to work.

Apparently we have a lot of bad musicians and equally impressive christians.

anyhow,

Sometimes a little nugget of truth will be stumbled upon, used out of context, and cause hurt and confusion.

That is a dangerous anthem.

Dangerous anthems also are dangerous because of how vague they tend to be.

The lack of specifics is a cause for alarm.

"God is doing a new thing" could mean anything, and justify any changes that are made... for better or worse.

A more accurate statement would be "we are doing a new thing and feel God is behind it" Although that doesn't quite have the same tribal ring to it when paired up with some djembes and acoustic guitars in a emotionally lit room.

or better yet " We are now doing _______________ and feel God is behind it because ___________"

I know... crazy concept. Actually describe what the new thing is and your reasoning behind it, turning it from a concept blindly shouted out and into a reality, and taking responsibility for your actions... not very romantic, but much healthier and appropriate.

So beware of dangerous anthems, bad music, and change your undies frequently... cause you never know when you will get in a car crash.

Peace.

Mr. Reuss talks to children...

In two and a half hours a co-worker and I will be talking to a group of 1st graders about what we do for work and how it helps the community. This has forced me to ask myself a good question.

How does my job help the community?

I feel like I could have easily answered that question in the last season of life I was in. When I was traveling around, getting my hands dirty for Jesus, building relationships with the marginalized and lost, spreading the hope and love of Jesus in very real ways. I now am part of a large church as the Outreach Ministry Coordinator for the Emerging Generation. I work with staff and volunteers in the Emerging Generation and encourage an outreach focus within the different specific areas of ministry: Children, Students, Young Adults. My job is to empower the staff and volunteers into having a healthy balance of loving God and loving others in their ministry. If I do my job well, I no longer have a job.

So, I guess you could say that my job is to help people help people?

later that same day

They called me Mr. Reuss (pronounced "royce" - it's German), that was kinda cute, but made me feel old.

we help people help people

In about twenty minutes... that's what we ended up explaining to them, although the topic of conversation also deviated to snowpants, siblings, and airplane-dogs in short but very necessary little outbursts. 1st graders crack me up. They are passionate. They also ask some amazing questions and have absolutely adorable comments that even my abstract mind stretched to connect to what had just been said.

We have a trip to India scheduled at the end of this year, so i showed the kids on a globe how far away India is from the United States. The amazement that audibly filled the colorful walls of their classroom was contagious. Even more precious was the chorus of bright eyed "ooohs" and "aaahs" that came after I said that someday they might even be able to go there and share about how much Jesus loves them. It was as though I just pulled a cuddly rabbit out of a top hat, and could honestly promise them one of their very own someday. Their own rabbit... not their own top hat.

As I am writing this I am starting to realize how important that experience was for me today. Twenty minutes with a 1st grade classroom of little ones who love Jesus. They see things the way I should. When I asked them for ways they can help others out, all their hands pointed up to the sky without hesitation.

without hesitation.

They didn't even consider whether they knew what to say or not... they cared even more than that. They just knew they wanted to help and figured they'd come up with something to say.

Their willingness to act went beyond their ability to articulate the appropriate response.

This is the opposite of what I am used to dealing with.

When it comes to outreach, I can hear the "appropriate response" from people but there is, more often than not, a lack of "willingness to act".

When did we learn to switch that around? Apparently sometime after 1st grade.

"I can share my toys with someone who doesn't have any"

"you can tell a joke to cheer someone up"

"I can bring a friend to church"

"I can walk over to my neighbors house and tell them Jesus loves them"

These were among the many answers represented by those enthusiastic hands in the air. The kids were squirming, just trying to be patient before we allowed them to share an answer. You know that If I would have given the kid an opportunity to actually do what they said, they would have done it in a heartbeat, without a question.

Toys would be shared.

Laughter would begin destroying the grumpies.

A little kid would go to church with his friend for the very first time.

A neighbor would have their heart completely melted away as a little girl in a pink dress and a bright smile said "Jesus loves you" .

I feel like I should make some valiant attempt at encouraging us to all act more like children in our approach to loving others. Honestly, I am not sure what good that would do. I have heard it said and urged hundreds of times before, by dozens of people. I don't think it is about convincing. The children seem to get it, and sadly enough.. the children will probably eventually join the ranks of their complacent role models in the mosaic generation. Maybe in 18 years they will be reminded of how loving and faithful young children are, and how it is a shame that they are not like that.

or...

We might be inspired by the raw and sincere hearts that these children display so freely. Their desire to share kindness and possessions in the name of Christ might actually spark something deep inside of us that resonates.. because it is right. Maybe their reminder to us will be a call to action that paves the way for their future and ours. The way we live our lives now is an example for those little children, and....

Our toys are bigger and we have more of them.

The "grumpies" we can destroy with our love are much more severe and widespread.

We have way more friends, and opportunities to bring them into healthy communities.

We aren't limited to just our next door neighbors, and it might take more than a pink dress and a smile to get the point across.

... but if we approach these things in faith and love and with the willingness of a child, I can't even begin to imagine the impact it could have and what a strong testimony of God's love that would be. God blessed me with that 20 minute glimpse into His kingdom and I am left thirsting for more. So, let's break these cycles and get our hands dirty for the sake of Christ.... if your still not convinced, go talk to a 1st grader and they'll put you in your place.

getting fired

I HAVE NOT BEEN FIRED...

....at least not at the time I sat down and wrote this entry.

I have talked a lot about different issues that I have with the church and the way christianity has been softened in the United States.

I have posted a number of entries that have presented some strong opinions and voiced concern particularly about the church I work at...

A few days ago I was faced with a decision.

It started like this... Last week my boss sent me an e-mail letting me know that my performance review was going to be conducted. At first I didn't really think anything of it. It is a fairly routine procedure.

The way our reviews work:

I am given a number of questions about my job and asked to answer them honestly.

My boss is given a number of categories describing my performance and asked to comment on them honestly.

I then send my answers to my boss and we sit together and discuss these things.

pretty easy, right?

Well... question "F" came up....

oh, question "F"... why did provoke me this way?

Question "F" was...

"Is there anything your supervisor or NHLC can do to enhance your job satisfaction, or help you do your job better?"

it was a moment of truth.

I work in Outreach, and my supervisor is great... but as I have hinted before... NHLC could give me a hand...

I responded....

"Love God and love others. The more we teach on the importance of this combination and have leaders that show lives that demonstrate it, the closer we will get to having outreach change from an event to a lifestyle. It seems outreach has become an area where it is culturally acceptable (in the church) to be hypocritical. We can promote it and not live it, and it seems that we are generally ok with that pairing. It would be extremely helpful if the heart of outreach were to be revealed and explained, and for this to be taught from the pulpit. It is equipping the congregation to recognize the Gospel as good news and respond to their salvation in ways that demonstrate Gods love and mercy to those who are hurting and in need; physically, emotionally, and spiritually. It would be helpful if, as a community of believers and individuals, we recognize how the world has gotten darker, and we take responsibility and acknowledge that it is largely due to an absence of light. We have been called to be that light but have been hiding and protecting ourselves, and for outreach focused lifestyles to flourish, this must change. We have become the barns that we ourselves have built bigger, and the numbers of those being saved is not daily increasing, because we have not made that a priority, and when these things are addressed, my job will become much easier. Also, a pay-scale increase would be nice."

So... that is what I wrote.

My performance review was yesterday.

My boss thanked me for taking the opportunity and being open and honest, and I received much positive feedback from here (I have talked with her about these things before)

This review will now make it's way up the chains of command...

but... this is the difference.

I was given a choice. I could keep expressing my thoughts on this blog and hope that some people become challenged, encouraged, and motivated to ask questions or take action.. and that could be it.

But I had the opportunity to share my opinions with those who can make a change, and I did.

When I have brought this up to others, I am asked things like...

So, did you get fired yet?

When is your last day?

Do you think you'll be getting fired then?

As you might have noted, there is a common theme in the responses. And though they are said in slight jest, I think it is important that I wrote what I did in the manner I did.

I also think it is important that you know I wrote what I did to who I did, because if I am going to continue to post things here, I need to be willing to stand behind my opinions when it counts and be bold enough to put things on the line in hopes of transformation.

So... I thank you for taking time to read this, and look forward to sharing more with you in a few days. Peace.

-Jreux

three things

I recently heard about a church plant in Midway...

Midway is the area in Saint Paul that I live in... I remember my first impressions of this area from when I was younger. I grew up in Roseville, which is a city directly North of Saint Paul. There is a main street called Snelling that goes between the two cities, and it is a very interesting drive if you pay attention to the surroundings.

Anyhow..

When I was younger, one of my friends wanted to go to this neighborhood, I think it was to get a piercing. I was probably 15 years old at the time and he was a bit older than me. I remember the change in surroundings as we entered Midway. It was kind of intimidating. I didn't recognize any of the stores... which was unusual, since from a young age you are blasted with so much advertising that you can become more familiar with these corporations than you are with the majority of kids in your classroom. Everything was old and weathered... like they had payed their dues, even the people seemed to be cut form a different cloth. The cozy residential area morphed into a busy concrete jungle. and I kind of liked it.

Years later I found myself living in this area, very close to the tattoo parlor we visited years before. I lived in a slummy apartment behind Ax-man surplus and just a stones throw away from the Turf Club. Across the street from us was a JJ's Fish n Chicken. Our apartment was in the news the morning after a guy was shot in their parking lot.

I ended up moving to a house in the same area with a few of my friends and we have been in this place for a while now.

In all honesty though, this is a great place to live. It is a diverse and friendly area with fantastic people, food, drink, and music. It is On the Saint Paul side of the Twin City divide, 10 minutes away from anywhere you'd want to go, and 20 minutes away from anywhere you'd need to go. I live in a quiet neighborhood and have some amazing neighbors... one guy even asked if he could help us when we were moving a piano into our house. Midway is fantastic.

and a recent church plant thinks so too.

Bloom

That is the name of the church. Check them out.

They are only 4 weeks old and have intentionally planted in this area because there are not many churches doing what they are doing in this area.

They are trying to create a service that will explain the message of Christ to people who have not yet heard it.

Sounds simple, right?

Well, that is kind of the point. The pastors of this church have much experience with larger suburban churches and have been in staff and pastoral positions in the past.

They have "three things" - title that they are going to focus on.

1. Jesus - Understanding who Jesus is, what he did, what the gospel is, and what that means for people today.
2.People - Belong, believe, behave.... approaching people with an attitude of grace and love, regardless of there beliefs or background.
3.Community - Building friendships and networks of support inside the church and also having a positive impact on the community outside the church.

That's it.

But what about a really awesome choir? Or a a dramatized version of "the passion" complete with live camels, or a brothas to mothas ministry?

Well, I am sure that a focus on Jesus, People, and Community will begin manifesting itself in more specific ways.. but they have seen how complicated things can get and feel called to focus on these three things.

refreshing.

I will admit, I was kind of a skeptic the first time I went to the church, so the next Sunday I went back and listened and learned. They are presenting a series that is focusing on the Gospel.

It is called "The Gospel. Period."

You can listen to their podcast soon.

I also had a chance to hear from their pastors as they explained how Bloom started and what heir focus is. I am hopefully going to be able to sit down with them in a one-on-one setting to learn some more.

It has been encouraging.

Partly because it is such a young church and it is planted in my neighborhood and it starts making me dream a little bit, but also because it is so basic.

three things.

This seems like a more rational and sustainable concept than the one-stop super shop Saint Marks International Jesus House Community Church of Hope model...

It would make sense that different congregations would have different focuses that were more specific... It is probably tempting, however, to add things on over time.. even with good intentions. But when this happens, maybe it can end up distracting us from our initial calling or giftings...

While I am speaking about a church body, I think this is true for people as well.

It is very easy to add things on, especially in the United States, where we largely identify ourselves by our achievements or social status. When that is all stripped away though, their is something at our core. A doctor might be a dancer, a poet might be a mechanic, a Director of public relations might be a missionary to China.

Sometimes a musician is a musician though, and when that is the case.. beautiful music, that resonates from the soul, dances through the air to bless others.

What are you? When everything is stripped down and removed and you ask yourself that.. what do you find?

Big questions. It is a interesting society that makes simplifying life so amazingly complicated.

As long as we keep asking questions though, I think we are in a good place. Peace.

-Jreux

A Conversation with Shane Claiborne

I was on the road with a friend of mine. We were heading down to a small university for christians, outside of the Twin Cities. Conversation was going well and we were anticipating our arrival as we raced the daylight down the asphalt ribbons interrupting the green open pastures.

Upon arriving at the university, my friend and I wandered around looking for where his friend, Shane, was going to be sharing. He had connected with Shane several times in the past and they had built a friendship based off of those times together. I had read his book "Irresistible Revolution" and was encouraged and motivated by it, so I was looking forward to being introduced as well..

We deciphered the wallpaper of advertisement on the hallway wall, and followed some signs to the room he was sharing in.

We walked in, and i could not help but laugh...

It was like being at a middle school dance. There were a bunch of starstruck, doe-eyed college students staring awkwardly in one direction and Shane Claiborne sitting by himself quietly on the other side of the room. It was amazing... as though he had just suffered defeat in a riveting game of red-rover. Apparently Shane was going to be speaking in a large chapel the next morning, and this was a smaller scale gathering of some university christian club... A setting like this is more intimate and allows for people to actually talk to the speaker... which added to the awkwardness of our middle school dance situation.

So, we enter... and I am captivated by this anomaly. I was probably looking at the students the same way the students were looking at Shane... just replace "starstruck" with "confused" and "doe-eyed" with handsome.

anyway... back to Shane.

My buddy immediately started talking with Shane and they were reconnecting and catching up... (I think this blew the minds of our spectators) and then I am introduced to him by my friend and the three of us talk briefly before Shane was called up to talk to this small gathering of anxious scholars.

So Shane talks, and it was good, and Shane sits back down next to me and we carry on a conversation.

I was in the middle of working with some other staff at my work turning a the idea of a community house into a reality (which it now is!)

So, I had some questions.. mainly about what the biggest challenges have been. I figure if you know how to come against the biggest challenges, you will experience firsthand the best results.

This is a summary of what he said...

paraphrased

" If at any time the community becomes exclusive or inward focused, it will die. The danger we see in community is just that. Our sights begin to focus on ourselves and how we can better who we are... and there is a certain amount of that which is needed, but if that is our only focus... the community dies. Also if at any point the community becomes exclusive, it will turn incestuous and slowly but surely rot away from the inside. A healthy community will be inclusive and outward focused"

Now... It has been a while since we talked.. and this is probably paired with my own thoughts.. but I think he offers some great insight, and not just for a community house.

The church is considered to be a community of believers. While Shane was talking specifically about his experience with community in Philly, I think there is some serious cross-over and insight about what has happened with the church at large.

That community seems to have erred on the side exclusivity and the focus also seems to be mainly directed inward. If this is the case, then the state of the church and it's health might be able to be better understood and hopefully counteracted.

Let me clarify... I am not trying to badmouth the church for the sake of complaining. That is pointless. I am willing to point out it's shortcomings in the hope that change occurs and awareness is raised. I know that many entries I have written have had a similar direction... I do not think that invalidates their relevance.

Increased knowledge equals increased responsibility, and while God requires obedience and not sacrifice, sometimes our obedience requires sacrifice. Peace.

-Jreux

Jesus doesn't like fat chicks...

I debated whether or not to have this be the title of the blog... apparently I decided to go with it...

I was going to church at The Salvage Yard last Tuesday and there was a message given by a 55 year old man with dreds named David Pierce who gave a message about the work that he had been doing through Steiger International. There were many fantastic stories about the amazing and difficult adventures that they had experienced and the way that God was able to work through their obedience...

there was one thing that stood out more than anything else though...

it wasn't the near death experiences shared with us, not the riots swelling on the streets in the middle east, the extremists beginning to organize an attack.. none of that.

it was the fat chicks.

and the story goes something like this...

paraphrased...

" I was looking out my window one day when a peculiar sight caught my eye. I saw a nest with two little baby birds in it... or rather.. two incredibly plump and obese chicks (baby birds).

These two chicks were so fat and gelatinous that they were barely recognizable as chicks.

The mother bird was working frantically to continue feeding them and was constantly gathering worms to feed these two chicks. All along, the fat chicks were crying out "more, more, more!"

It was surprising that these two chicks had grown to the mass that they had... They barely fit in the nest, they were so overfed.

for several days I would walk by the window and see this scene replayed... the momma bird frantically struggling to feed the chicks, the chicks becoming more overstuffed and crying out for more, and so on.. and so on.

until...

one day I went to the window to check on the situation.

the nest was empty.

The mother bird had pushed the chicks out of the nest, because the time had come.

It was time to fly, or time to die"

David went on to explain how he felt that this was an accurate representation of the church. We have gotten comfortable in our nest and we continue calling out for more.. more... more.

We have become overly saturated with focusing on what God is doing for us.. what the ministries of the church are providing for us... our personal preference for what the music in the church sounds like.... where we think the altar in the church should be placed... more... more... more...

let me spell this out more clearly...

We "christians" have focused on ourselves and expected the "church" ( pastors, worship leaders, staff, ministries, etc...) to momma bird the fat chicks (the congregation) while the people attending continue to get more fat, and more comfortable, and whether we like it or not there will come a new season where it is "time to fly, or time to die"

we cannot fit in the nest any longer.

and...

if the entire focus of our faith is for self-improvement we are probably doing something wrong...

in other words...

If what we are doing within the four walls of the church has no effect on the streets we take to get there... we might be missing the point...

So, as I was processing through some of this with a friend, a simplified summary surfaced...

"Jesus doesn't like fat chicks"

It is time to fly

Nearly kicked out of the church I work at...

We have recently undergone some very big changes at the church I have been working at for the past two years. All of the services were combined into one service for an undetermined length of time. There are between 2500 and 3000 people attending various services every weekend, corralling that many people into one location was a feat in itself. Combine that with all the different personalities and worship preferences...

let me explain... because, we got it all,

.... you get the sword swinging flag wavers waiting for the schofar to blow, while the liturgically saturated hymn singers are thirsty for a wicked organ solo, and the culturally absorbed "hip Christians"wondering why the pastor isn't wearing a stylish untucked button up shirt and pre-ripped blue jeans or sitting on a stool and waiting for their three easy steps to a better family life... and everything else in between. This is a horse of a different color. So, why is this happening?

Well, the short answer is that we are entering into a season to try to build unity and seek God in order to figure out what exactly we are. Good stuff.

In the midst of this circus, not everyone is truly welcome...

I am going to tell a story...

Remember that story in the Bible about Jesus and the sermon on the mount? That part where Jesus says to a young man and his friend "Hey, aren't you those punks that disrupted things earlier on? Get out, you aren't welcomed here!" It turns out that the young man was Matthew, and he left, very confused.... then Jesus turned to the remaining 11 and said "now, go and do likewise" and Jesus continued on with the sermon...

what? you don't remember that story?... hmm... weird. Maybe this was just in "The Message" version...

Anyway, the story has a point... it honestly does.

Last week we had the first "United Service", and I invited one of my friends to come with. He is on staff with a ministry in Minneapolis... so we attend the service and immediately afterwards an elderly man approaches us and apologizes to us.

This was weird, since it was the first time I had ever talked to this man.

He goes on to explain that he and some others saw us enter the building and were looking for us in order to kick us out, because they had mistakenly profiled us...

I was nearly kicked out of the church that I work at. (title)

Fortunately he ran into one of the pastors and pointed over to us before doing the deed. It was then explained to him that I am on staff and they had the wrong people...

To be fair, we don't really look like we belong in a suburban mega church (this is a weird, kind of sad statement... yet true)

crisis averted, right? No blood, no foul?

Hmm.. what if it this would have happened to another person instead...? yikes.

What if Joe Shmo walked into the church and was tracked down and asked to leave just because of the way he looked? What kind of statement does that make? Where are our priorities as a church?

We looked like people that didn't belong in a church and would have been kicked out if I didn't work there....

It seems like we are more concerned about "protecting" the congregation than we are about reaching out to the lost and hurting... especially true if we won't even accept them in when they walk through our own doors.

well, maybe all this will get sorted out from our "United Service"season? I sure hope so.

-Jreux

This is a summary of what the blog is about.. the bigger the word, the more it is mentioned. I found this rather interesting... Make your own at http://www.wordle.net/

mostaza

Wow...

disclaimer: This might offend some.

In reviewing my life over the past couple years and comparing it to the other 23... I feel pretty confident saying that this has been the most difficult season of my life. A very long season also. An ecclesiastical ass kicking. Some of you will remember that I was sent out of Costa Rica to be a missionary in the TwinCities... I knew I was going to somehow act as a bridge between the church and the city but I did not have any idea that I was going to be planted in the (sarcastically) plush and vibrant soil of a suburban mega church. ouch. I have been in this environment for almost 2 complete years now.. this is the longest I have been in one spot since 2005.. and what a spot to be in... the north american evangelical suburban mega church has become my mission field and I need your prayers.

While many of the words in "north american evangelical suburban mega church" are scary.. the section that has caused the most pain and deception is "north american"

This is not because we are being attacked by the paganistic culture of the north american seculars, it is because we ( the north american "church" at large) have become a product of the culture. We are just the religious flavor a of a consumeristic society.

One of my current favorite authors, Mike Erre, pastor of Rock Harbor church in Costa Mesa, CA. puts it this way in Death by Church.. and I agree.
"We are now realizing that the monster of consumerism in the church is the monster we helped create. We ( "christians" ) built the church on a consumerist model, which focused on comfort and convenience and attracted a middle-class audience that demanded safety and security. In effect, the people came to the services to be fed. the church became a feeding trough, and the members grew comfortable, fat, and lazy. this made embracing the need to focus outward and be missional a tough sell. Ironically, Jesus took just the opposite tack - following Him was dangerous and costly. he didn't always make His messages easy for everyone to grasp. He didn't make people comfortable, and He was often carving away followers rather than attracting new ones. Sadly, in today's church, the vast majority of the church's growth comes form "church hoppers" - people who move from one church to another based on comfort and preference. in other words, we're stealing sheep instead of going out and making new disciples."


I think there is wisdom for us to reevaluate our lives and the culture of our congregations and ask ourselves "Is this what the bride of Christ is meant to be?"

Worst case scenario.... we realize we have fallen far from what Jesus called us to as His followers and we can begin to repent and move toward His calling. We can lay out the cost of what it means to be a disciple and either commit to that life or turn away from it. There is no middle ground.

Best case scenario.... you realize that you are in fact walking out the mandate, and loving God with all your heart, soul, and might in a state of re-dedication to the Lord, and doing so in a corporate movement along with other Christ followers who are ushering the kingdom of God into this world and demonstrating His love in grace in unimaginable ways. Good job, I'd love to hear more.

What if the Jesus we have come to worship in the "north american evangelical suburban mega church" is an idol? what if we have softened our perception of Christ so drastically for the sake of "reaching others" and being "seeker sensitive" that we have muffled His true calling and the actual cost of being His disciple? What if we have forfeited the Jesus of Nazareth for the Jesus of Suburbia? (another good book)

well.. maybe I am just blowing off steam, but I hope that is not the case.. I hope that someone will read this, feel uncomfortable, ask questions, and start the dangerous task of following Christ.

...or I hope a revolutionary seeking Christ will read this and find comfort knowing that they are not alone or crazy in thinking that there is something more out there than the candy coated gospel of the caucasian christ.

peace and love.

-Jreux